Russian Policy towards the South Caucasus
Zinaida Shevchuk


Soft Power
•soft power -  a power which influence others though cooptation rather than coercion. It has three
major components: political legitimacy, economic interdependence and cultural values.

Soft power in Russia´s Grand Strategy
•Westernisers - pessimistic about Russia’s use of soft power in the post-Soviet region.
•The role of the Russia, as Western nation, has to be the spread of western values and setting
standards of liberal democracy.
•To only effective way how to address its regional problems is through multilateral institutions
and cooperation with the West.

Soft power in Russia´s Grand Strategy
•Stabilizers - soft power is significant for achieving grand strategic goals of Russia. Key
objective is greater security and stability in Russia’s periphery, which can be achieved through
economic modernization.
•The best way how to achieve grand strategic goals are transforming Russia into a
“nation-civilization”.

Soft power in Russia´s Grand Strategy
•Imperialist - military forces are key element, particularly in such conflict area as Caucasus is.
•The most effective way to achieve this objective is through supplying arms to secessionist
territories, granting them status of independent states, giving Russian passport to those who is
pro-Russian oriented and is willing of reunification with Russia and applying economic sanctions on
politically “disloyal” states

?
•How effective is a support of ethnic conflict in advancing Russian grand strategic interests?
•
•How effective is ethnic conflict as a tool for Russia’s grand strategic interests in South
Caucasus region?
•
•Is destabilizing of the region the good way to keep these states from NATO membership?

Debate on Russia’s Grand Strategy
•After the collapse of the USSR there was apparent identity crisis and ideological vacuum.
•
•What happens after the demise of the Empire?

Russia’s security interests – a sphere of influence
•Russia’s threat assessment is different from other powers.
•Threat is coming from all directions:
•- the Caucasus, Central Asia, a dispute with Japan over Kuril Islands, a war of words with Canada
over drilling right in the Arctic, deployments of US BMD systems in Poland and Romania, US warships
in Black and North Seas and NATO further enlargement. Opinion that Russia’s aggressive reaction in
August 7-8 of 2008 was caused by Georgia’s integration in NATO - is the well-known argument.

Russia’s security interests – a sphere of influence
•The Realpolitik of Russian leadership is rooted in the belief, that the world is composed by great
powers – USA, China and Russia – and their “spheres of influence.”
•
•characteristic feature of global politics is to compete over these spaces.

Russia’s security interests – a sphere of influence
•“civilization unity”
•
•Russian speaking world (Russkij Mir)
•
•Russian Federation was proclaimed “as the locus of Russian national identity”
•
•protection of “near abroad” and opposing the NATO expansion

Russian interests in South Caucasus
•South Caucasus represents a buffer zone between the Russian North Caucasus and the Islamic world.
•
•Area in which Russia feels threated and there is a risk of rise of other regional powers, such as
Turkey.
•
•Gateway for Russian influence in the Middle East and Central Asia
•
•pipelines and energy resources

Russian interests in South Caucasus
•Russian strategy:
-creation of the of satellite states, to control the extraction and transportation of energy
resources, penetration economic influence, moderation of armed conflict and keeping the region out
of Western influence.
-
-keep Caspian pipelines under its control and overcome the diversification of energy resources to
Europe.
-

Russian interests in South Caucasus
•Russia’s doctrine is base o “controlling the civilization role of the Russian nation in Eurasia”,
because “Russia is traditionally linked with the former Soviet republics, and now newly independent
states, by history, the Russian language and great culture, cannot stay away from the common
striving for freedom”

Russian interests in South Caucasus
•Russian policy can be identified as a policy paradigm of “controlled instability” in the South
Caucasus region the ultimate goal of which is to thwart the integration of this region into NATO
and EU.
•
•Moscow strategy has been favored to use the stick, rather than to offer carrots, use threats and
exert significant pressure, rather than offering rewards for compliance.

•Russian toolkit in advancing its grand strategic interests in the South Caucasus region is based
on coercive means.
•
•The use of military is not effective and does not lead to determination of Russia’s rule in this
region and to the resolution of security dilemma.

•Russian security interests are based on the consumption that it is critically important to
maintain a security belt in its periphery, which has to be created by satellite or even subordinate
nations.
•
•Pro-democratic movements or so called “colored revolutions” in Georgia and Ukraine where perceived
by Russian analyst as chaotic and dangerous which could spread instability on Russia’s doorstep.

Conclusion
•Post-Soviet or post-imperial Russia did not experience a rebirth as a nation-state, like for
example democratic Germany after the World War II  or Kemalist Turkey. It did not shrink into a
small fragment, as a memento of past imperial glory, like for example Deutsch-Oesterreich after
1918, which became the Republic of Austria. It created the Commonwealth of Independent States,
which has however nothing to do with commonwealth except for the term itself. It has promoted a
Russophobie in light of Russkiy Mir, but it has not been supported by attractive soft power
components. Contrary to that, Russia’s strategy was to use military power to protect its natural
sphere of influence.
•

Conclusion
•From Russian perspective the downfall of empire is recognized, but Russia has to remain a great
power.
•
•The imperial élan has gone, however Russian establishment defines their country as a “great
power”.
•
•Russia´s interests in former Soviet region are real, but we can claim that privileged zone in that
area is a chimera.

Conclusion
•Adopting a new role after 500 years as an empire, seventy years as an ideological warrior and over
forty year during the Cold War period as a military superpower is not easy for Russia. Russia will
never be able to restore the Soviet Union. Russian Federation today is in a position of post-empire
rather than neo-empire.
•

•“No great power walks alone” and close allies, satellite nations are significant part of a great
power’s armory.
•